Gunners Town is pleased to feature this guest post by Zach Lowry (@zachlowry) – a freelance journalist who writes for various outlets such as FutMob, RG News and more.
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Arteta and Nicholas Jover " data-image-caption="
Arteta and Nicholas Jover
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Arteta and Nicholas Jover
In July 2019, Manchester City appointed Nicolas Jover as an assistant coach to Pep Guardiola. Having previously spent time as a video analyst for Montpellier, a match analyst for Croatia, and a set-piece analyst for Brentford, the Frenchman was appointed on the recommendation of Guardiola’s No.2 – Mikel Arteta. Jover helped to fine-tune City’s set-piece plays and guided them to the 2020/21 Premier League title as well as the UEFA Champions League Final, before leaving in 2021 after his contract expired. City’s loss proved to be Arsenal’s gain – Jover reunited with Arteta in North London and was tasked with revolutionizing Arsenal’s success in attacking and defending dead-ball situations.
Working alongside Arteta, assistant coaches Albert Stuivenberg, Steve Round, Carlos Cuesta and Miguel Molina, and goalkeeping coach Iñaki Caña, Jover was able to take the Gunners to a new level in terms of set-pieces. These fine margins would prove vital for Arsenal, who pushed City for the league title in each of the past two seasons. In 2023/24, Arsenal tied a Premier League record by scoring a whopping 16 goals from corner kicks. And whilst it seems that they have taken a step back in their overall form this season, they’ve only improved as far as set-plays go.
Arsenal have scored 30 goals from set-pieces since the start of the 2023/24 season, or 25.2% of their 119 league goals. With 22 goals from corner kicks in that period, they find themselves seven ahead of the next-best team in Europe’s top five leagues (Bayer Leverkusen).
“When you look at the number of goals that Arsenal are scoring from set-pieces this season, it shows you that having a set-piece coach who’s solely responsible for focusing on defending and attacking set-plays can be very useful for any team,” said Atlético-CP manager Nikola Popović in an RG interview. As soon as they go up for a set-piece, you can tell that Arsenal believe they’re going to score, and this is very important for each team. They are a constant threat and are the best team in the world right now when it comes to attacking dead balls.”
It remains to be seen whether or not Arsenal will be crowned as the kings of England or the kings of Europe this season, but one thing’s for sure: as long as Nicolas Jover is at the helm, they will remain the kings of set-pieces.
Guest Writer
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